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Air service to L.A. to go on hiatus

Allegiant to take a break during slow period of late summer, autumn

By {screen_name}
Friday, July 22, 2011

Allegiant Airlines will suspend service between Grand Junction and Los Angeles for a few weeks this year beginning next month.

The discount airline, which offers flights to Los Angeles and Las Vegas through Grand Junction Regional Airport, will not offer local flights to and from Los Angeles between Aug. 29 and Nov. 9 or between Nov. 28 and Dec. 14. Los Angeles flights will resume Dec. 15 and are scheduled to continue through at least mid-February, which is as far out as Allegiant’s schedule currently goes, according to Allegiant spokeswoman Jordan McGee.

McGee said the two periods of hiatus were planned based on when passenger numbers were low in 2010. Allegiant flights to and from Grand Junction had more than 2,000 and fewer than 3,000 passengers each month in 2010, according to Grand Junction Regional Airport statistics, but that data does not separate Los Angeles passengers from Las Vegas passengers.

McGee said there are no plans at this time to put flights between Grand Junction and Las Vegas on hiatus.

It’s a common practice for Allegiant to place certain flights on hiatus during slow periods, McGee said. Each hiatus is considered on a year-to-year basis, she said, so it’s hard to tell if the same periods will be blocked out in 2012.

“(Suspensions) help us keep our fares lower for times of the year when demand is higher,” McGee said. “It’s certainly not unique to Grand Junction.”